Intercultural Communication in the Workplace - Article Example

Ke Kou Ke La” – this is the phonetic equivalent of Coca Cola in Chinese language. From the first glance, everything is ok; however, the Chinese person will laugh at this phrase because its translation is “female horse stuffed with wax”. The famous slogan of Pepsi “Come alive with the Pepsi generation” in Taiwan sounds as “Pepsi will bring your ancestors back from the dead.” There are many similar examples in practice of the international business (Spangle 2002). In order to avoid such misunderstandings, the knowledge of the cultural differences can be very helpful. Despite of the rapid globalization, the cultural differences still play the significant role in determining the success of the business operations. Intercultural workplace communication is more than an ability to use the foreign language, but also requires being tolerant to the other’s party’s cultural values and traditions, to the preferences in conversation, understanding the meaning of the non-verbal communication. It has become the common practice for the international companies to invite foreign partners to work on the projects. For example, if IKEA plans to expand its operations to the Korean market, the top management might consider an option of cooperation with Korean sales representatives who have both the knowledge and skills to make the integration more successful. Such cooperation is not always successful, unfortunately. The major problem is caused by the lack of cultural understanding. Situation: The American company plans to start the new marketing campaign to be used both in United States and in Japan, one of the key target markets. Being aware of cultural differences and willing to avoid wrong perception or translation of the slogan, it was decided to invite the group of marketing specialists from Japan. Five Japanese specialists came to United States and joined the company’s marketing team. It was the well-thought-of decision to invite them; however, the project initiator has not paid enough attention to a very important issue – intercultural communication in the workplace setting. So, what was the problem? The American member of the team presented his proposal to the Japanese member. While explaining his ideas, the American points to the paragraph he considered the most important. The Japanese draws in his breath and says that this idea needs special attention. The American decides that his idea is considered favorably. The misunderstanding here is that the American specialist concluded that the meeting is successful while the Japanese specialist wanted to point out that there are serious difficulties. Miscommunication is the major source of discomfort and conflict at work. More women, ethnic minorities and foreigners are entering the workforce and, as the result, the workplace is getting increasingly multicultural. Communication is more than what is said, written or expressed. Representatives of the different cultures have different communication styles: it means how, when and why the information is said. Misunderstanding occurs when the communications style of one individual differs from communication style of another individual (Ting-Toomy 2001). The problem becomes more complex when the communication styles differ based on the cultural heritage and both parties lack the knowledge of these differences. Americans v Japanese Americans are more direct in communication and if there is the problem, they expect to hear it in forthright manner; while the Japanese specialists prefer indirect communication style: less assertive. Sayings like “special attention is needed” might indicate that there are serious problems. In addition, Japanese are more reluctant to say “No”. For example, the indefinite answer in perceived as undesired to cooperate by American business people, while Japanese are willing to say “Yes” as the sign that they are listening. When is comes to making an agreement, Japanese are not likely to say unconditional “Yes” or “No”. This small cultural peculiarity might lead to the serious problems because of misunderstanding. Understanding non-verbal communication is of equal importance to project success as the proper perception of verbal communication. Appearance, tone of voice and facial expressions provide additional information and enrich the understanding. In the above situation, English is the second language for Japanese partners and they are likely to lose some control over their non-verbal expressions. For example, the foreign accent elicits uncomfortable feelings because of the poor control of tone of voice. It is hard not to pay attention to such details and awkward facial expression might seem to American partner as the sign of incompetence in the area of discussion (Spangle 2002). This is not the only area for potential misunderstanding. Humor is another one. It is normal for people to smile and everybody is aware of the meaning of a laughing. However, the meaning differs – Japanese are known to smile all the time, even when they talk about the death of the relative. In addition, Japanese often start laughing as the expression of their negative attitude. For Americans, such smiles and laughs appear to be strange and out of place. The similar situation is with the body language. Global community is already aware that Japanese bow and hand shaking is not common for them as well as hugs and kisses are excluded. Bowing is the integral part of the Japanese culture and is the sign of courtesy without invasion into personal space. In addition, Japanese consider direct eye-contact to be offensive while Americans find it uncomfortable to talk to partners when the eye-contact is not maintained. Americans find it difficult to understand why Japanese have negative attitude to legal documentation while doing the business while Japanese are puzzled why Americans have to cultivate the mutual trust with the signed contract (March 1996). Such differences are deeply rooted in the each culture and cannot be just ignored. It is normal that it is harder to communicate when two people know each other very little, but it is twice harder to communication when these people belong to the different cultures and know little about the culture. Traditionally, Japanese partners are used to come into the conversation with the knowledge about the status of the partner. The language politeness and humility depend on the affiliation of the partner. In the above case study, the Japanese are working on the line as American partners and there should no problem with status identification. Unlike Americans who prefer directness in everything they do or say, Japanese culture teaches Japanese to be very attentive to signals. They rarely send assertive and clear messages as well as do not completely accept the similar messages while try to find the second meaning to the message. Japanese are culturally resistant to say assertive “no”. Tips to improve the communication There is the number of factors which can improve the communication among representatives of different cultures and help to avoid serious misunderstanding. First, it is advised to learn how greetings style differ among the cultures, how the problems are discussed and conflicts solved. Second is phasing – the time required by each partner for the discussion of the issue and time to make the decision. Third is paying attention to the argument styles. In American culture, it is a norm to argue in the direct, emotional manner, while Japanese prefer more impersonal, calm and short argumentation (March 1996). Japanese are consensus oriented and value preserving the harmony among the partners. It can be harmful for the project – for example, in order to avoid the arguments with American representatives, the Japanese are ready to accept the idea even if they do not completely agree with it. Effective communication is more than recognition of the differences, it is also about respecting the dealing with these differences in the proper manners (Ting-Toomy 2001). The representatives of both cultures are advised to pay attention not only to the verbal communication skills, but also to the written and non-verbal. Being flexible and tolerant, avoiding the judgments and stereotypes, willingness to the point of view of the partner, and taking time to practice are all the important qualities in improving the intercultural communication in the workplace. In conclusion, effective intercultural communication is more than the knowledge of language or business manners. When the groups consists of representatives of the different cultures, the misunderstandings are almost unavoidable. Americans are used to speaking fast, while Japanese pause and let the silence speak for them. Japanese tend to think first what they want to say while Americans are used to speaking up all of the thoughts and ideas. Business world is getting more and more culturally diverse and in order to make the cooperation with foreign partners more effective it is necessary to be more tolerant to the culturally embedded differences. Tolerance and patience are the best qualities for multicultural communication. The casualness of American manner can confuse Japanese who tend to set personal limitations in any kind of relations. Finding the communication style that is suitable for all is not an easy task, but it is achievable. Word Count: 1462 References March, R. (1996). Working for a Japanese Company: Insights into the Multicultural Workplace. Kodansha International Press. Ting-Toomy, S. & Oetzel, J. (2001). Managing Intercultural Conflict Effectively (Communicating Effectively in Multicultural Contexts). Sage Publications. Spangle, M. & Isenhart, M. (2002). Negotiation: Communication for Diverse Settings. Sage Publications. Read More